Please meet one of our great partners @FordiDetNytter. They are doing an amazing job in Kenya.

Kenya, January 29, 2021

FDN is a volunteer run NGO based in CPH aiming at supporting womens rights and possibilities in Kenya, by keeping girls in school through the simple act of donating reusable sanitary pads..

Young girls absence from school during their period is a well-known problem in Kenya. This affects the girls' educational level, grades, self-esteem and effectively their career possibilities. The young girls and their families cannot afford to prioritize buying sanitary pads and panties – causing the girls to miss out on one week of schooling per month, at best. In other situations, the girls' families decide that the meager school fees should not be spent on girls who cannot participate continuously, often leading to the girls quitting school completely at the age of 13. Others again try to use moss, cloths or leaves to manage their menstruation, with infections, infertility and serious illness as a result.

The distribution of recyclable safepads can prevent this!

In collaboration with SafePad, FDN provides the girls with the necessary support to stay in school, which is of great importance for the girls' self-esteem and future opportunities. In addition to providing the girls with pads and panties, they also receive necessary sex education as well as advice on personal hygiene from localy hired teachers.

Unemployment for women is a major problem in the area. Therefore, FDN's products are produced by FDN's local women's group.

The "women's group concept" is a flourishing successful business model in East Africa.

FDN donates sewing machines and sewing training to a group of local women who, in turn, are "hired" to sew volumes of sent SafePad materials. Every year, FDN buys the produced pads and donates these to local schools, while the women's income is reinvested in materials and fabric for school uniforms that the women sew for additional personal profit.

That way, a small piece of fabric can produce local jobs and income, while keeping young girls in school and securing their future opportunities.

In the coming years, we hope to secure enough donations to be able to expand to ensure schooling for even more young girls.

FDNs current projects was established by Marianne Stæhr Olsen after working as a teacher in the area and it is now run by a board of volunteers in Copenhagen.

The project takes place in Nyakach, Kenya near Lake Victoria.

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